It's 9:20, and the game is still on.
I've just watched the second worst play of the season. Ponikarovsky just Patrik Stefan'd and Carolina tied the game with the goalie pulled. Nice fucking going, Poni. Fag!
More to come...
Tuesday, December 18, 2007
Sunday, December 16, 2007
Trade Rumours. Thoughts.
The day after McCabe suffers a long term injury to his hand, the rumours are swirling already in Leafs Nation.
Some thoughts from Eklund in his latest blog at HockeyBuzz.com, he goes over the rumours that the Leafs are in need of a defenseman, and Raycroft is on his way out. I think it is absolutely ridiculous to believe that the Leafs need another defenseman, just to replace McCabe for the next two months. Seeing how we have one of the most expensive blue lines in the league, with about $20 million committed to them this year. Plus they have depth all the way down to the Toronto Marlies, so a move is not needed.
In his blog, he said:
"The word on the street this morning is that McCabe's injury will REALLY further open the trade floodgates....Derek Morris is a guy to look to and it may come at the expense of Raycroft either being moved or placed on waivers.
The team that would pick up Raycroft on re-entry waivers is likely Pittsburgh...."
Come on Ek, stop spewing words out of your ass, nobody wants to pay $2 million dollars to back up Bryzgalov in Phoenix, and you can guarantee he wont take over the #1 job there. Also, the Leafs don't need to make drastic changes because their mistake-making, 30 minute-a-game defenseman is out. Possibly a smart move by Pittsburgh, but you shouldn't worry about the Leafs taking another d-man under their wing. And as Mr. Bone said, you will probably see Kronwall come up to join the big club once again.
But let's keep our fingers crossed that the Leafs put Raycroft on waivers, because he has shown that he is incompetent of coming through when the Leafs REALLY need him, and I think the Leafs have found their #1 goalie already. He comes in the name of Vesa Toskala. The move would clear up some cap room, and then the Leafs could bring up Scott Clemmensen or Justin Pogge to back up Vesku.
Don't expect any moves soon though, Eklund has 10 rumours a day, and it doesn't even say this one is from sources.
Some thoughts from Eklund in his latest blog at HockeyBuzz.com, he goes over the rumours that the Leafs are in need of a defenseman, and Raycroft is on his way out. I think it is absolutely ridiculous to believe that the Leafs need another defenseman, just to replace McCabe for the next two months. Seeing how we have one of the most expensive blue lines in the league, with about $20 million committed to them this year. Plus they have depth all the way down to the Toronto Marlies, so a move is not needed.
In his blog, he said:
"The word on the street this morning is that McCabe's injury will REALLY further open the trade floodgates....Derek Morris is a guy to look to and it may come at the expense of Raycroft either being moved or placed on waivers.
The team that would pick up Raycroft on re-entry waivers is likely Pittsburgh...."
Come on Ek, stop spewing words out of your ass, nobody wants to pay $2 million dollars to back up Bryzgalov in Phoenix, and you can guarantee he wont take over the #1 job there. Also, the Leafs don't need to make drastic changes because their mistake-making, 30 minute-a-game defenseman is out. Possibly a smart move by Pittsburgh, but you shouldn't worry about the Leafs taking another d-man under their wing. And as Mr. Bone said, you will probably see Kronwall come up to join the big club once again.
But let's keep our fingers crossed that the Leafs put Raycroft on waivers, because he has shown that he is incompetent of coming through when the Leafs REALLY need him, and I think the Leafs have found their #1 goalie already. He comes in the name of Vesa Toskala. The move would clear up some cap room, and then the Leafs could bring up Scott Clemmensen or Justin Pogge to back up Vesku.
Don't expect any moves soon though, Eklund has 10 rumours a day, and it doesn't even say this one is from sources.
Leafs' Play Stinks Like a Dirty Vag
You've already been updated on the biggest news to come out of last night's game, that being Bryan McCabe's broken wrist. In other, slightly less rough news, the Leafs were beaten handily last night by the Montreal Canadiens; final score 4-1.
Tomas Kaberle: Vesaaaa, I didn't get an enema for nothing, hurry up and put it in!
There weren't many positives to come from last night's game. The Leafs played exactly like a team that had played the night before. Scratch that - the Leafs played like a team that had taken on Spartan Warriors the night before. Beat Atlanta on Friday, then dine in hell on Saturday. The team looked sluggish almost from top to bottom.
I won't do too much analysis from the game. The team performed badly, and there isn't much else to say about it. I will say, however, that Vesa Toskala was hung out to dry like the morning wash. Two of Montreal's four goals were tipped in. Another one was one of the worst defensive breakdowns in league history. So, blame not Mr. Toskala for this game.
CBC showed an interesting stat about Vesa last night. During his first 12 games with the Leafs, his save percentage was 0.875. I know that isn't technically a percentage, but that's how it's written in hockey. I have no idea why 0.875 is considered any better than a true percentage of 87.5. Whatever. In his last 13 games (not including last night), his save percentage was 0.943.
This may not seem like the hugest swing to someone not totally familiar with the stat, but a save percentage of 0.900 is generally considered the benchmark for an NHL-calibre goaltender. That is, save 9 shots of every 10 and you're OK. The difference between 0.875 and 0.943 is the difference between a career minor league goaltender and a superstar NHL goaltender. In other words, the difference is fucking huge.
As for the abovementioned defensive breakdown, I think it merits some discussion. Pavel Kubina and Tomas Kaberle were the culprits. Kubina lost his stick, forcing Nik Antropov to give him his. With Antropov stickless, Montreal was effectively on the man advantage. They controlled the puck in the Leafs' zone and sustained pressure. Somehow, both Kubina and Kaberle - apparently mesmerized by the puck movement - abandoned the front of the Leafs net...with Saku Koivu there. Koivu got the puck not too soon after, and deked a helpless Toskala for the eventual game winning goal. Seriously, that kind of shit doesn't happen in peewee hockey. Just. Fucking. Brutal.
The McCabe Injury
Paul Maurice's reaction:
"He's got three broken bones in his hand, it's bullshit."
"He's too good a player to lose that much time on a bullshit play like that."
My reaction:
The play looked fine. It sucks to lose the player that plays the most for you, but that's the way she goes sometimes. I really don't think the play was dirty - maybe a little illegal, but I'd be really surprised if Kostitsyn was suspended over it. The good news of it all is that Staffan Kronwall is likely to be called up to replace McCabe on the roster. Kronwall was sent down recently despite having outplayed Andy Wozniewski by a great deal. Hopefully this latest stint will see him stay with the Leafs at Woz's expense. Bones it!
Tomas Kaberle: Vesaaaa, I didn't get an enema for nothing, hurry up and put it in!There weren't many positives to come from last night's game. The Leafs played exactly like a team that had played the night before. Scratch that - the Leafs played like a team that had taken on Spartan Warriors the night before. Beat Atlanta on Friday, then dine in hell on Saturday. The team looked sluggish almost from top to bottom.
I won't do too much analysis from the game. The team performed badly, and there isn't much else to say about it. I will say, however, that Vesa Toskala was hung out to dry like the morning wash. Two of Montreal's four goals were tipped in. Another one was one of the worst defensive breakdowns in league history. So, blame not Mr. Toskala for this game.
CBC showed an interesting stat about Vesa last night. During his first 12 games with the Leafs, his save percentage was 0.875. I know that isn't technically a percentage, but that's how it's written in hockey. I have no idea why 0.875 is considered any better than a true percentage of 87.5. Whatever. In his last 13 games (not including last night), his save percentage was 0.943.
This may not seem like the hugest swing to someone not totally familiar with the stat, but a save percentage of 0.900 is generally considered the benchmark for an NHL-calibre goaltender. That is, save 9 shots of every 10 and you're OK. The difference between 0.875 and 0.943 is the difference between a career minor league goaltender and a superstar NHL goaltender. In other words, the difference is fucking huge.
As for the abovementioned defensive breakdown, I think it merits some discussion. Pavel Kubina and Tomas Kaberle were the culprits. Kubina lost his stick, forcing Nik Antropov to give him his. With Antropov stickless, Montreal was effectively on the man advantage. They controlled the puck in the Leafs' zone and sustained pressure. Somehow, both Kubina and Kaberle - apparently mesmerized by the puck movement - abandoned the front of the Leafs net...with Saku Koivu there. Koivu got the puck not too soon after, and deked a helpless Toskala for the eventual game winning goal. Seriously, that kind of shit doesn't happen in peewee hockey. Just. Fucking. Brutal.
The McCabe Injury
Paul Maurice's reaction:
"He's got three broken bones in his hand, it's bullshit."
"He's too good a player to lose that much time on a bullshit play like that."
My reaction:
The play looked fine. It sucks to lose the player that plays the most for you, but that's the way she goes sometimes. I really don't think the play was dirty - maybe a little illegal, but I'd be really surprised if Kostitsyn was suspended over it. The good news of it all is that Staffan Kronwall is likely to be called up to replace McCabe on the roster. Kronwall was sent down recently despite having outplayed Andy Wozniewski by a great deal. Hopefully this latest stint will see him stay with the Leafs at Woz's expense. Bones it!
Saturday, December 15, 2007
McCabe Update.
I'm gonna let Mr. Bone do the business tonight, but first I have a few things to say.
As if Montreal didn't already did the dagger deep enough in the Leafs, news on McCabe is that he has three broken bones in his hand from the hit by the Habs player late in the third period(not bothered to check who, not important). The hit smashed Caber's hand right into the boards because of the akward collision, and Caber headed straight to the dressing room, favouring his left hand. I hope those faggy, euro-trash, Habs fans are happy.
The update (first heard from TSN), is that McCabe will miss 6-8 WEEKS. Thats right, TWO MONTHS. Fuckin' brutal. As if the 4-1 ownage wasn't bad enough, our top line defenseman is out until February.
If you can, check out a sports brodcaster soon and check out Paul Maurice's reaction about the hit on McCabe, worth a watch, and you can already guess that he isn't too happy about it and there are a lot of bleeps.
Look to see Kubina see a lot more ice time, and racking up big time points on the powerplay. Don't get too sappy about McCabe being gone, as Kubina was Tampa Bay's #1 defenseman when they were the balls, and McCabe is constantly coughing the puck up and routinely makes bad defensive mistakes.
Now, I hand it off to Mr. Bone. Hopefully he rips into the Leafs, and their inability to create good scoring chances against their group of 4th liners (thanks for saying it to the public, Guy Lafleur).
Fuck I hate the Habs. Almost as much as I hate their loser fans.
As if Montreal didn't already did the dagger deep enough in the Leafs, news on McCabe is that he has three broken bones in his hand from the hit by the Habs player late in the third period(not bothered to check who, not important). The hit smashed Caber's hand right into the boards because of the akward collision, and Caber headed straight to the dressing room, favouring his left hand. I hope those faggy, euro-trash, Habs fans are happy.
The update (first heard from TSN), is that McCabe will miss 6-8 WEEKS. Thats right, TWO MONTHS. Fuckin' brutal. As if the 4-1 ownage wasn't bad enough, our top line defenseman is out until February.
If you can, check out a sports brodcaster soon and check out Paul Maurice's reaction about the hit on McCabe, worth a watch, and you can already guess that he isn't too happy about it and there are a lot of bleeps.
Look to see Kubina see a lot more ice time, and racking up big time points on the powerplay. Don't get too sappy about McCabe being gone, as Kubina was Tampa Bay's #1 defenseman when they were the balls, and McCabe is constantly coughing the puck up and routinely makes bad defensive mistakes.
Now, I hand it off to Mr. Bone. Hopefully he rips into the Leafs, and their inability to create good scoring chances against their group of 4th liners (thanks for saying it to the public, Guy Lafleur).
Fuck I hate the Habs. Almost as much as I hate their loser fans.
Leafs Hot In Hotlanta
The Leafs handed the Altlanta Thrashers their asses last night, with a 4-0 win. The image below is Kari Lehtonen after he shit the bed on Boyd Devereaux's short-handed goal. Every goalie mishandles the puck sometimes, Kari, but fer fucksakes the least you could do is give half an effort to get back into the net to bail yourself out. Why the fuck didn't you dive there? If I am a Thrashers fan, I let Lehtonen have it after that display. That is, after I am done fondling my friends' junk. You know, cause I'd be gay if I liked the Thrashers. Meuh!
The Leafs sustained significant offensive pressure for much of the night. The #1 line of Sundin, Antropov, and Poni had 8 points last night. Atlanta's defense was simply not up to the task of handing their size or strength. Moreover, when the #2 line (Wellwood, Blake, Tucker) came over the boards, Atlanta's D was ill-equipped to handle their speed. I'd love to call Paul Maurice a genius for assembling his lines this way - two top lines that can control the attack in two very different ways - but I think last night was an extreme example of his line combinations working. Atlanta's defense looked piss poor; it was like watching Toronto's D earlier in the season.
Toronto's powerplay again looked as strong as an adolescent vegetarian. In the first period, the Leafs were up for 4 minutes, and managed zero shots. Not only that, they sustained no pressure in Atlanta's zone and generally made the Thrashers look like penalty killing specialists. Great even-strength forechecking and solid goaltending again bailed out a supremely shitty powerplay. Had the Leafs lost last night, every writer in the city would be citing the powerplay as the main issue.
Random Gamed Notes:
- Marian Hossa: did you play last night? Jesus fucking christ, you were invisible!
- Every single time that I watch Ilya Kovalchuk play, I say to myself something along these lines, "Wow, this guy is really, really fucking good". He didn't mark up the scoresheet, was team worst -3, and I'd still call him Atlanta's best player last night. He is that good. His skill set is unparalleled in the world - nobody can do what he does with the puck. He gives me a boner.
- When Vesa Toskala stopped Kovalchuk on a partial breakaway in the second period, I about shit. Did you about shit? Toskala summoned some awkward Curtis Joseph acrobatics to make the save, and it looked fantastic. When I see Kovalchuk in high percentage attacks such as that, I assume a goal is automatic. Small birds saw Toskala's save, and immediately fell from the sky, dead.
- Two players surprised me with their play. Darcy Tucker, who has been getting the piss taken out of him recently for poor play - including here at The Blue & White - looked energized last night. He was finishing checks, going hard for the puck, and playing with tenacity that we haven't seen for a month or so.
- On the other hand, Alexei Zhitnik appears to think he's playing old-timers hockey. Wow, has this guy ever fallen from grace. Picked up last year for top-level prospect Braydon Coburn, Zhitnik hasn't scored a point in nearly two months, and often plays less than 10 minutes per game thanks to his shitty play. Seeing as Don Waddell is now coaching the team as well as acting as general manager (he was the one who traded for Zhitnik last year), I imagine he is feeling a little terrible for trading away Coburn for a guy that looks finished...and is taking his frustration out on Zhitnik's icetime.
The Leafs sustained significant offensive pressure for much of the night. The #1 line of Sundin, Antropov, and Poni had 8 points last night. Atlanta's defense was simply not up to the task of handing their size or strength. Moreover, when the #2 line (Wellwood, Blake, Tucker) came over the boards, Atlanta's D was ill-equipped to handle their speed. I'd love to call Paul Maurice a genius for assembling his lines this way - two top lines that can control the attack in two very different ways - but I think last night was an extreme example of his line combinations working. Atlanta's defense looked piss poor; it was like watching Toronto's D earlier in the season.
Toronto's powerplay again looked as strong as an adolescent vegetarian. In the first period, the Leafs were up for 4 minutes, and managed zero shots. Not only that, they sustained no pressure in Atlanta's zone and generally made the Thrashers look like penalty killing specialists. Great even-strength forechecking and solid goaltending again bailed out a supremely shitty powerplay. Had the Leafs lost last night, every writer in the city would be citing the powerplay as the main issue.
Random Gamed Notes:
- Marian Hossa: did you play last night? Jesus fucking christ, you were invisible!
- Every single time that I watch Ilya Kovalchuk play, I say to myself something along these lines, "Wow, this guy is really, really fucking good". He didn't mark up the scoresheet, was team worst -3, and I'd still call him Atlanta's best player last night. He is that good. His skill set is unparalleled in the world - nobody can do what he does with the puck. He gives me a boner.
- When Vesa Toskala stopped Kovalchuk on a partial breakaway in the second period, I about shit. Did you about shit? Toskala summoned some awkward Curtis Joseph acrobatics to make the save, and it looked fantastic. When I see Kovalchuk in high percentage attacks such as that, I assume a goal is automatic. Small birds saw Toskala's save, and immediately fell from the sky, dead.
- Two players surprised me with their play. Darcy Tucker, who has been getting the piss taken out of him recently for poor play - including here at The Blue & White - looked energized last night. He was finishing checks, going hard for the puck, and playing with tenacity that we haven't seen for a month or so.
- On the other hand, Alexei Zhitnik appears to think he's playing old-timers hockey. Wow, has this guy ever fallen from grace. Picked up last year for top-level prospect Braydon Coburn, Zhitnik hasn't scored a point in nearly two months, and often plays less than 10 minutes per game thanks to his shitty play. Seeing as Don Waddell is now coaching the team as well as acting as general manager (he was the one who traded for Zhitnik last year), I imagine he is feeling a little terrible for trading away Coburn for a guy that looks finished...and is taking his frustration out on Zhitnik's icetime.
Wednesday, December 12, 2007
Criticism!
Fucking finally!
Yesterday, there was an anonymous comment left in response to my A Good, Old-Fashioned Shit Kicking article. I've linked to it, but it's the article directly below this one so it isn't hard to find. To view the comment, click where it says 1 comments.
Side note: The reason I have allowed anyone to leave comments, and for those comments to be fully visible by anyone that visits the site, is that I look forward to this type of criticism, and hope it sparks a debate. It lets me know what people like, or - much more likely - dislike about the site. So, to Anonymous: thanks!
Anyway, Mr. (or Mrs.) Anonymous really ripped into me. Almost as bad as the way visible minorities are ripped into in small town Ontario.
Anonymous had a few issues, and I'm going to go over them here.
"people dont come to this site to see totally irrelevant pictures of retards hitting on 70 year old ladies and its not related to anything."
I disagree. I think people come to this site to get a mix of [1] Leafs news [2] Leafs opinion [3] Wit, however little. Anonymous suggested that I place a photo directly related to the game instead of the one I posted. Fair enough. But to me, it gets a little tired seeing the same photo with every post. It's either the Leafs winning, or the Leafs losing. There are only a certain amount of pictures taken for each game, and even fewer of those are available to use (i.e. not copyrighted). Fuck, I've already had to resort to pirating; fully half of the images I use are pirated. So, if I want a little break in the monotony - in this case to see a puddinhead thug - I'ma post it. See, it's the look on the young man's face that does it for me. You may see typical Down's Syndrome facial expressions, but I saw typical thug ridiculousness. I really don't think that a picture has to be relevant to have merit. Case in point:
"i havent heard of this antropov power outage from the media, stop making shit up mr. bone"
I really don't know what to say about this one, except that I have heard of it. On several occasions. I've said it before, but I make an effort to read or watch everything Leafs on a daily basis. Many writers mentioned Antropov's lack of production, including big names Damien Cox and, if I remember correctly, Howard Berger. I'd check, but I'm not ambitious enough - ever look through newspaper or website archives? Fuck that! In any event, The term power outage came from Joe Bowen / Greg Millen on Leafs regional broadcasts, and I ran with it.
"thats two posts know that you have come up with nothing to write about so you just starting writing what you are doing"
You're probably right. I find that I lose readers when I get technical. So, I try to spread those comments out. And as a result, posts can be as thin as an Asian dink. If you have suggestions as to what you'd like to see (anyone, not just Anonymous) I'm all ears.
"HOW DO YOU MISS HAL GILL'S MONSTEROUS GAME? HE SHUT DOWN LECAVALIER AND ST.LOUIS THE WHOLE GAME!!"
Wow. Anonymous was pretty steamed about this one. All caps? That's a bold statement. Monstrous game? Is that you, Pierre McGuire? Are you Mr. Anonymous? Gill's play over the last several games has been really fucking fantastic. Like, Bruce Lee fighting Chuck Norris in Way Of The Dragon fantastic. I probably should have mentioned his play in my post. I don't however, think he single-handedly shut down Lecavalier and St. Louis like he did Jaromir Jagr a few games ago. Against Tampa Bay, the forwards on the ice against the #1 line were given shadow roles to play. This was especially evident when the 3rd (Stajan) and 4th (Bell) lines were on the ice. When the top two Leafs lines were out, they were mostly in the Tampa Bay zone, neutralizing the Tampa offense through their own. So, maybe Gill deserved a mention, but I think Anonymous took it a little far.
"You must have missed the game and only watched the highlights."
I did see the game, although I admit to tuning it out a bit in the third when the game was mostly out of reach. When I don't watch the games, you'll see Danno posting instead of me. I'd never post about a game I didn't watch. I'd speak to that ruining the integrity of the site, but I don't believe the site has any. So, I'll just say that it'd be a really shitty thing to do. I've recruited Danno for exactly that reason.
So, Mr. (or Mrs.) Anonymous, I hope this satisfies you. I look forward to more of your comments, and maybe next time you'll sign your own name.
Yesterday, there was an anonymous comment left in response to my A Good, Old-Fashioned Shit Kicking article. I've linked to it, but it's the article directly below this one so it isn't hard to find. To view the comment, click where it says 1 comments.
Side note: The reason I have allowed anyone to leave comments, and for those comments to be fully visible by anyone that visits the site, is that I look forward to this type of criticism, and hope it sparks a debate. It lets me know what people like, or - much more likely - dislike about the site. So, to Anonymous: thanks!
Anyway, Mr. (or Mrs.) Anonymous really ripped into me. Almost as bad as the way visible minorities are ripped into in small town Ontario.
Anonymous had a few issues, and I'm going to go over them here.
"people dont come to this site to see totally irrelevant pictures of retards hitting on 70 year old ladies and its not related to anything."
I disagree. I think people come to this site to get a mix of [1] Leafs news [2] Leafs opinion [3] Wit, however little. Anonymous suggested that I place a photo directly related to the game instead of the one I posted. Fair enough. But to me, it gets a little tired seeing the same photo with every post. It's either the Leafs winning, or the Leafs losing. There are only a certain amount of pictures taken for each game, and even fewer of those are available to use (i.e. not copyrighted). Fuck, I've already had to resort to pirating; fully half of the images I use are pirated. So, if I want a little break in the monotony - in this case to see a puddinhead thug - I'ma post it. See, it's the look on the young man's face that does it for me. You may see typical Down's Syndrome facial expressions, but I saw typical thug ridiculousness. I really don't think that a picture has to be relevant to have merit. Case in point:
"i havent heard of this antropov power outage from the media, stop making shit up mr. bone"
I really don't know what to say about this one, except that I have heard of it. On several occasions. I've said it before, but I make an effort to read or watch everything Leafs on a daily basis. Many writers mentioned Antropov's lack of production, including big names Damien Cox and, if I remember correctly, Howard Berger. I'd check, but I'm not ambitious enough - ever look through newspaper or website archives? Fuck that! In any event, The term power outage came from Joe Bowen / Greg Millen on Leafs regional broadcasts, and I ran with it.
"thats two posts know that you have come up with nothing to write about so you just starting writing what you are doing"
You're probably right. I find that I lose readers when I get technical. So, I try to spread those comments out. And as a result, posts can be as thin as an Asian dink. If you have suggestions as to what you'd like to see (anyone, not just Anonymous) I'm all ears.
"HOW DO YOU MISS HAL GILL'S MONSTEROUS GAME? HE SHUT DOWN LECAVALIER AND ST.LOUIS THE WHOLE GAME!!"
Wow. Anonymous was pretty steamed about this one. All caps? That's a bold statement. Monstrous game? Is that you, Pierre McGuire? Are you Mr. Anonymous? Gill's play over the last several games has been really fucking fantastic. Like, Bruce Lee fighting Chuck Norris in Way Of The Dragon fantastic. I probably should have mentioned his play in my post. I don't however, think he single-handedly shut down Lecavalier and St. Louis like he did Jaromir Jagr a few games ago. Against Tampa Bay, the forwards on the ice against the #1 line were given shadow roles to play. This was especially evident when the 3rd (Stajan) and 4th (Bell) lines were on the ice. When the top two Leafs lines were out, they were mostly in the Tampa Bay zone, neutralizing the Tampa offense through their own. So, maybe Gill deserved a mention, but I think Anonymous took it a little far.
"You must have missed the game and only watched the highlights."
I did see the game, although I admit to tuning it out a bit in the third when the game was mostly out of reach. When I don't watch the games, you'll see Danno posting instead of me. I'd never post about a game I didn't watch. I'd speak to that ruining the integrity of the site, but I don't believe the site has any. So, I'll just say that it'd be a really shitty thing to do. I've recruited Danno for exactly that reason.
So, Mr. (or Mrs.) Anonymous, I hope this satisfies you. I look forward to more of your comments, and maybe next time you'll sign your own name.
Tuesday, December 11, 2007
A Good, Old-Fashioned Shit Kicking
Them's the words of Tampa Bay Lightning coach John Tortorella, after the Leafs beat his team 6-1 last night at the ACC. The Lightning's road record is now 2-11-1 - good for dead last in the league - so keep that in mind before you start melting down gold to make statues of the Leafs.
The Leafs scored 4 goals in 4:42 in the second period. Boner! Two of those were powerplay goals, which were badly needed to give confidence to the Leafs' 29th ranked powerplay. Because of the two PPG, the Leafs' PP moved up a spot to 28th. Nothing huge, obviously, but it's making moves. Speaking of making moves...
A lot is being made of Brad Richards' leg injury. He slid into the boards with Tomas Kaberle on top of him and looked to have slammed his left knee into the boards without padding helping him out. It would have fucking hurt, if you ask me. The reality, however, is that it was 4-1 after the second, and bringing Richards back into a game that is basically out of reach is asinine. Why would he bother to come back? Why not rest him until the next game? It makes absolutely no sense to put him back into the lineup for an (almost) sure loss. Don't panic yet, Lightning fans; I'm not convinced he'll be out long.
Random Game Notes:
- Tomas Kaberle's pass that sent Sundin in on a breakaway (Sundin scored) was something only a select few defenseman can do.
- Media folks, both newspaper and television, have been pointing out that Nik Antropov has been quietly slowing down since his quick start. They're calling it a power outage; I really don't understand this term. It's fucking cliché and garbage. To them, I give this: Antropov has 6G in his last 5 games, and is on pace for 40. Moreover, he has 7 powerplay goals, good for 9th place in the league, only 2 behind league co-leaders Alex Ovechkin and Tomas Holmstrom. He is 2nd in team scoring to Mats Sundin's career year and actually averages the most icetime of any Leafs forward. Power Outage? More like a Power Onage! Meuh!
- Methinks its time that Darcy Tucker is made a healthy scratch. Any typical Leafs fan will tell you that Tucker is the heart and soul of the team, bleeds blue and white, should be captain, blah blah fucking blah. The only excuse for his play is that he's apparently playing hurt. Honestly though, he has done nothing all year, and is floundering out there, almost every shift. When I was typing 'shift', my fingers typed 'shit'. Freudian slip, I am sure. Even my subconscious thinks Tucker has to improve.
- Mats Sundin went 17-3 in faceoffs last night against very competent Lightning centres. You won't see numbers like that for the rest of the season.
The Leafs scored 4 goals in 4:42 in the second period. Boner! Two of those were powerplay goals, which were badly needed to give confidence to the Leafs' 29th ranked powerplay. Because of the two PPG, the Leafs' PP moved up a spot to 28th. Nothing huge, obviously, but it's making moves. Speaking of making moves...
A lot is being made of Brad Richards' leg injury. He slid into the boards with Tomas Kaberle on top of him and looked to have slammed his left knee into the boards without padding helping him out. It would have fucking hurt, if you ask me. The reality, however, is that it was 4-1 after the second, and bringing Richards back into a game that is basically out of reach is asinine. Why would he bother to come back? Why not rest him until the next game? It makes absolutely no sense to put him back into the lineup for an (almost) sure loss. Don't panic yet, Lightning fans; I'm not convinced he'll be out long.
Random Game Notes:
- Tomas Kaberle's pass that sent Sundin in on a breakaway (Sundin scored) was something only a select few defenseman can do.
- Media folks, both newspaper and television, have been pointing out that Nik Antropov has been quietly slowing down since his quick start. They're calling it a power outage; I really don't understand this term. It's fucking cliché and garbage. To them, I give this: Antropov has 6G in his last 5 games, and is on pace for 40. Moreover, he has 7 powerplay goals, good for 9th place in the league, only 2 behind league co-leaders Alex Ovechkin and Tomas Holmstrom. He is 2nd in team scoring to Mats Sundin's career year and actually averages the most icetime of any Leafs forward. Power Outage? More like a Power Onage! Meuh!
- Methinks its time that Darcy Tucker is made a healthy scratch. Any typical Leafs fan will tell you that Tucker is the heart and soul of the team, bleeds blue and white, should be captain, blah blah fucking blah. The only excuse for his play is that he's apparently playing hurt. Honestly though, he has done nothing all year, and is floundering out there, almost every shift. When I was typing 'shift', my fingers typed 'shit'. Freudian slip, I am sure. Even my subconscious thinks Tucker has to improve.
- Mats Sundin went 17-3 in faceoffs last night against very competent Lightning centres. You won't see numbers like that for the rest of the season.
Monday, December 10, 2007
Leafs Waive Bye To Battaglia
The headline may be lame, but considering that Sportsnet went with "Leafs roster de-Bated", I'm way ahead of the game.
In any event, Bates Battaglia has been placed on waivers by the Leafs. No real surprise here, as Battaglia hasn't played much at all this season. The Leafs are likely sending Bates down to the Toronto Marlies, but he must first clear waivers in order for them to do so.
In 13 games this season - he spent the other games as a healthy scratch - Bates had 0G 0A for a whopping 0 points. He averaged only 4:46 of icetime, so its hard to fault him too much for the lack of offense. But when you factor in his -6 rating, the fact that he wasn't pulling his weight becomes obvious.
The reality is that Boyd Devereaux plays almost the same game as Battaglia, except that Boyd is faster and more tenacious. The good news for Battaglia is that the Marlies are kicking some ass in the AHL, and he'll get to play for a winning team. Could be worse, I suppose.
See how his picture says Not for public use? I didn't, I swear.
In any event, Bates Battaglia has been placed on waivers by the Leafs. No real surprise here, as Battaglia hasn't played much at all this season. The Leafs are likely sending Bates down to the Toronto Marlies, but he must first clear waivers in order for them to do so.
In 13 games this season - he spent the other games as a healthy scratch - Bates had 0G 0A for a whopping 0 points. He averaged only 4:46 of icetime, so its hard to fault him too much for the lack of offense. But when you factor in his -6 rating, the fact that he wasn't pulling his weight becomes obvious.
The reality is that Boyd Devereaux plays almost the same game as Battaglia, except that Boyd is faster and more tenacious. The good news for Battaglia is that the Marlies are kicking some ass in the AHL, and he'll get to play for a winning team. Could be worse, I suppose.
See how his picture says Not for public use? I didn't, I swear.Saturday, December 8, 2007
Belak's Scoring Touch Gone, Leafs Lose.
The Leafs lost tonight, 2-1 to the Boston Bruins.
The Leafs were given every opportunity to win tonight; Glen Murray alone took four poor penalties in the second half of the game. The Leafs scored on none. It was as if the team became bored of winning and chose to half ass it tonight against Boston.
Boston started Alex Auld. You've heard of him: he's the goaltender that filled in adequately for Dan Cloutier in Vancouver a couple of seasons ago, then was traded to Florida in the Roberto Luongo deal, then shit the bed, then lost the starting job to a 40+ year old Ed Belfour, then was let go by Florida, then signed with Phoenix, then shit the bed again, then was traded to Boston this week for a mediocre minor league player. Yep, that Alex Auld...he beat the Leafs tonight. Son of a slut.
The Toronto powerplay again looked as impotent as a 90 year old alcoholic watching a Bea Arthur goatse. This is where the team is supposed to excel. They have invested big money on powerplay specialist defensemen, and their return on investment is lower than Enron stock.
Nearly every team in the league would give up a significant amount for Tomas Kaberle, and I really think that trading him is a great idea. This isn't a sour statement because the Leafs lost. Tomas Kaberle is the Leafs' most prized asset; Mats Sundin is the better player, but Kaberle is younger, is locked up long-term, and is signed below market value. There is no player on the Leafs that would fetch higher trade value than Kaberle. And, since the Leafs have zero chance of winning the Cup this year (or any year for the duration of Kaberle's contract) why not stock up on young talent or prospects or draft picks...or all of the above?
I'm not going to take the piss out of Ian White again tonight. He is what he is. I do think, however, that Paul Maurice agrees with me about White's play of late. Pavel Kubina's return to the lineup has meant decreased playing time for Ian White. In other words, as soon as there was an option other than Andy Wozniewski, White sat on the bench. Enough said, I reckon.
Chuck Kobasew's goal was of the type that we haven't seen from Toskala much this year, if at all. A shot that wasn't screened, tipped, or tricky in any way. It simply beat him. Vesa has been extremely solid on shots of that type. It sorta sucks that he let one in tonight (that ended up being the game winner), but I am pretty damn thankful that he routinely makes those shots look routine. Why am I saying routine so much? I dunno, its part of my routine, I guess. Routine.
Post Script: Milan Lucic and Zdeno Chara could pass for identical twins...the ugliest goddam twins you'll ever see. If they were born 100 years before they were, they'd have been sold to the circus. And circus patrons the world over would have cringed at the sight of the two dog-faced giants...after seeing the lobster boy and the FeeJee Mermaid.
Post Post Script: I am pretty sure that the giant from Big Fish was molded after Chara. Mug shots below.
The Leafs were given every opportunity to win tonight; Glen Murray alone took four poor penalties in the second half of the game. The Leafs scored on none. It was as if the team became bored of winning and chose to half ass it tonight against Boston.
Boston started Alex Auld. You've heard of him: he's the goaltender that filled in adequately for Dan Cloutier in Vancouver a couple of seasons ago, then was traded to Florida in the Roberto Luongo deal, then shit the bed, then lost the starting job to a 40+ year old Ed Belfour, then was let go by Florida, then signed with Phoenix, then shit the bed again, then was traded to Boston this week for a mediocre minor league player. Yep, that Alex Auld...he beat the Leafs tonight. Son of a slut.
The Toronto powerplay again looked as impotent as a 90 year old alcoholic watching a Bea Arthur goatse. This is where the team is supposed to excel. They have invested big money on powerplay specialist defensemen, and their return on investment is lower than Enron stock.
Nearly every team in the league would give up a significant amount for Tomas Kaberle, and I really think that trading him is a great idea. This isn't a sour statement because the Leafs lost. Tomas Kaberle is the Leafs' most prized asset; Mats Sundin is the better player, but Kaberle is younger, is locked up long-term, and is signed below market value. There is no player on the Leafs that would fetch higher trade value than Kaberle. And, since the Leafs have zero chance of winning the Cup this year (or any year for the duration of Kaberle's contract) why not stock up on young talent or prospects or draft picks...or all of the above?
I'm not going to take the piss out of Ian White again tonight. He is what he is. I do think, however, that Paul Maurice agrees with me about White's play of late. Pavel Kubina's return to the lineup has meant decreased playing time for Ian White. In other words, as soon as there was an option other than Andy Wozniewski, White sat on the bench. Enough said, I reckon.
Chuck Kobasew's goal was of the type that we haven't seen from Toskala much this year, if at all. A shot that wasn't screened, tipped, or tricky in any way. It simply beat him. Vesa has been extremely solid on shots of that type. It sorta sucks that he let one in tonight (that ended up being the game winner), but I am pretty damn thankful that he routinely makes those shots look routine. Why am I saying routine so much? I dunno, its part of my routine, I guess. Routine.
Post Script: Milan Lucic and Zdeno Chara could pass for identical twins...the ugliest goddam twins you'll ever see. If they were born 100 years before they were, they'd have been sold to the circus. And circus patrons the world over would have cringed at the sight of the two dog-faced giants...after seeing the lobster boy and the FeeJee Mermaid.
Post Post Script: I am pretty sure that the giant from Big Fish was molded after Chara. Mug shots below.
Friday, December 7, 2007
Another Win, Really?
I almost can't believe it myself...the Leafs are on a 4 game winning streak, after beating the New York Rangers 6-2 last night. This was no ordinary beating, either. This was damn near a Rodney King.
Oh, and speaking of kings, King Henrik looked like King Ralph last night, allowing 4 goals on 10 shots.
Nik Antropov ripped a hat trick last night, his first since his rookie season. It prompted The Sun to run a "Nik Does The Trick" headline, and The Star to run a slightly less irritating "Antropov Does The Trick" headline. If you think about it, they're actually really insightful headlines...for autistic pre-schoolers. But seriously, Antropov was dominant-and-a-half last night and I pretty much get a boner every time he steps on the ice.
Random Game Notes:
- First and foremost: Hal Gill had his best game of the season. Not only did he totally shut down Jaromir Jagr, but he picked up 2 assists. Bones it!
- Pavel Kubina returned from roughly a month off due to injury. He played just under 20 minutes and picked up an assist.
- I still find the Rangers' centre situation puzzling and fucking hilarious at the same time. This is a team that goes out to spend tens of millions of dollars on free agent centremen, only to play noob Brandon Dubinsky on the top line with Straka and Jagr. What that means is that one of Scott Gomez or Chris Drury is, in effect, their #3 centre. Ouch. It's a good thing the Leafs' total lack of depth at centre ensures they'll never have that problem.
- Staying with Gomez, he dominated the faceoff circle last night, going 13-2. Insane numbers!
- Vesa Toskala wasn't as spectacular last night as he was his previous game versus Nashville, but he was every bit as solid. He seems to be getting better every week. And, don't look now, but his goals against average - just under 4 for the first month of the season - is officially under 3.
Oh, and speaking of kings, King Henrik looked like King Ralph last night, allowing 4 goals on 10 shots.
Nik Antropov ripped a hat trick last night, his first since his rookie season. It prompted The Sun to run a "Nik Does The Trick" headline, and The Star to run a slightly less irritating "Antropov Does The Trick" headline. If you think about it, they're actually really insightful headlines...for autistic pre-schoolers. But seriously, Antropov was dominant-and-a-half last night and I pretty much get a boner every time he steps on the ice.
Random Game Notes:
- First and foremost: Hal Gill had his best game of the season. Not only did he totally shut down Jaromir Jagr, but he picked up 2 assists. Bones it!
- Pavel Kubina returned from roughly a month off due to injury. He played just under 20 minutes and picked up an assist.
- I still find the Rangers' centre situation puzzling and fucking hilarious at the same time. This is a team that goes out to spend tens of millions of dollars on free agent centremen, only to play noob Brandon Dubinsky on the top line with Straka and Jagr. What that means is that one of Scott Gomez or Chris Drury is, in effect, their #3 centre. Ouch. It's a good thing the Leafs' total lack of depth at centre ensures they'll never have that problem.
- Staying with Gomez, he dominated the faceoff circle last night, going 13-2. Insane numbers!
- Vesa Toskala wasn't as spectacular last night as he was his previous game versus Nashville, but he was every bit as solid. He seems to be getting better every week. And, don't look now, but his goals against average - just under 4 for the first month of the season - is officially under 3.
Tuesday, December 4, 2007
Leafs Win 3rd Straight, Belak Scores, I'm Sober. One Of These Is False...
...but don't they all seem very unlikely?
Just as the Leafs appeared to hit rock bottom, they've now won three straight and earned 7 of the last 8 possible points after beating Nashville tonight.
I don't fucking get it.
Two weeks ago, the Leafs would have lost a game to the last place team from a vegetarian league. Now, they can't be stopped. Don't get me wrong - I love watching the Leafs win, but this winning streak after the pathetic display they'd just shown defies all logic. Rather than try to figure it out, I'll grab myself another Schlitz. I had a Scarborough Suitcase during the game, so forgive me if I'm off tonight.
So, this is what I noticed about the game when my eyes were temporarily able to focus on the TV.
- Bryan McCabe is playing too much. Over 30 minutes again tonight. It's either that Paul Maurice is showcasing him for trade, or overcompensating for the public lashing out at him weeks ago. There is no excuse for him to play more than Tomas Kaberle (as he does...consistently). Well, unless Kaberle dies or sumthin. And even then, it's a toss-up.
- The Leafs' powerplay in the second period - when Radek Bonk was in the box for Claude Lemieuxing Staffan Kronwall - was disgusting. No offensive pressure. A clumsy attack. No cohesiveness. They looked even strength at best. There is about 10 million dollars in salary manning the point during Leafs powerplays; wasn't the man advantage supposed to be a strong point?
- Vesa Toskala looked pretty fantastic tonight. Did you fucking see those saves against Jason Arnott? To those that believe Andrew Raycroft should still be #1 in Toronto - you ignorant ditch diggers - believe this: Jason Arnott would have scored tonight if #1 was #1.
- Alex Steen. Bag O' Shit. That pretty well sums up his game.In the first minute of the third period, he missed a net more wide open than your mom backstage at a Motley Crue concert. Then, he was directly responsible for Nashville's only goal of the night. When Vesa Toskala cleared the puck around the boards to him, he totally fucking missed it - under no pressure at all, mind you - and Shea Weber put the puck on goal with perfect results. Alex, that was practically impossible to fuck up - how'd you manage?
Greg Millen The Good: On Mats Sundin's record threatening 16th straight home game with a point, "In a hockey market this big, I am very surprised how unnoticed this streak by Sundin has gone." Touché. All the media this team gets and this streak gets no play. For shame! It should noted, I guess, that The Blue & White hasn't mentioned it either. There are too many bad Damien Cox articles to take the piss out of I suppose.
Millen The Bad: On Bryan McCabe's huge playing time lately, "30 minutes again, he's been great." What the christ? What Bryan McCabe have you been watching, Greg? Since McCabe's playing time has increased , he's been making fewer mistakes, sure, but that does not mean he's been great, and it also does not mean he's earning his contract. It really only means that he's been less shitty. I hope that's not what's passing for great in Toronto.
Just as the Leafs appeared to hit rock bottom, they've now won three straight and earned 7 of the last 8 possible points after beating Nashville tonight.I don't fucking get it.
Two weeks ago, the Leafs would have lost a game to the last place team from a vegetarian league. Now, they can't be stopped. Don't get me wrong - I love watching the Leafs win, but this winning streak after the pathetic display they'd just shown defies all logic. Rather than try to figure it out, I'll grab myself another Schlitz. I had a Scarborough Suitcase during the game, so forgive me if I'm off tonight.
So, this is what I noticed about the game when my eyes were temporarily able to focus on the TV.
- Bryan McCabe is playing too much. Over 30 minutes again tonight. It's either that Paul Maurice is showcasing him for trade, or overcompensating for the public lashing out at him weeks ago. There is no excuse for him to play more than Tomas Kaberle (as he does...consistently). Well, unless Kaberle dies or sumthin. And even then, it's a toss-up.
- The Leafs' powerplay in the second period - when Radek Bonk was in the box for Claude Lemieuxing Staffan Kronwall - was disgusting. No offensive pressure. A clumsy attack. No cohesiveness. They looked even strength at best. There is about 10 million dollars in salary manning the point during Leafs powerplays; wasn't the man advantage supposed to be a strong point?
- Vesa Toskala looked pretty fantastic tonight. Did you fucking see those saves against Jason Arnott? To those that believe Andrew Raycroft should still be #1 in Toronto - you ignorant ditch diggers - believe this: Jason Arnott would have scored tonight if #1 was #1.
- Alex Steen. Bag O' Shit. That pretty well sums up his game.In the first minute of the third period, he missed a net more wide open than your mom backstage at a Motley Crue concert. Then, he was directly responsible for Nashville's only goal of the night. When Vesa Toskala cleared the puck around the boards to him, he totally fucking missed it - under no pressure at all, mind you - and Shea Weber put the puck on goal with perfect results. Alex, that was practically impossible to fuck up - how'd you manage?
Greg Millen The Good: On Mats Sundin's record threatening 16th straight home game with a point, "In a hockey market this big, I am very surprised how unnoticed this streak by Sundin has gone." Touché. All the media this team gets and this streak gets no play. For shame! It should noted, I guess, that The Blue & White hasn't mentioned it either. There are too many bad Damien Cox articles to take the piss out of I suppose.
Millen The Bad: On Bryan McCabe's huge playing time lately, "30 minutes again, he's been great." What the christ? What Bryan McCabe have you been watching, Greg? Since McCabe's playing time has increased , he's been making fewer mistakes, sure, but that does not mean he's been great, and it also does not mean he's earning his contract. It really only means that he's been less shitty. I hope that's not what's passing for great in Toronto.
Monday, December 3, 2007
Leafs Win...And I Post Nothing
Yours truly was one of the lucky few (thousand) that was at the Air Canada Centre on Saturday night to see the Leafs beat the Pittsburgh Penguins 4-2. OK, the game really wasn't great, but the good guys won - despite a partial 3rd period collapse - and I was fall down drunk in my fancy standing room "seats". Boner of a night.
Sidney Crosby was absolutely invisible during the game. If I didn't know better, I'd have assumed he was a run-of-the-mill 2nd or 3rd line player based on his performance on Saturday. Once-in-a-generation players aren't supposed to disappear for entire games like that, and it furthers my theory that Crosby is not. Crosby is absolutely a franchise player - the type of player you build a team around - but I am still not convinced he is in the Bobby Orr / Wayne Gretzky / Mario Lemieux mold.
Let me get one more thing off my back: Gary Roberts. This is a player that is still regarded as a nice rental player for any team planning to do damage in the playoffs. A player that will make any team he is on better. I am here to tell you that Gary Roberts is finished, and has been since his last season in Toronto. Before you attack me, let me say this: Roberts has produced for a long time in the NHL, and overcome things that deserve a standing ovation when he hangs the skates up. Moreover, he is a great character guy and leader. But, as a player, he is done. Roberts looked terrible on Saturday night, taking 3 penalties and going -1. He is still capable when within 10 feet of the opposition's net, but is a liability everywhere else. Watching Roberts in Toronto was agony; he simply can no longer do the things that an effective player can, but you want to cheer for him because he's a great guy who has overcome a lot. Saturday night was a little easier as he was on the opposing team, so his mistakes only helped the home team.
The best Maple Leafs article you will read all season:
Bold statement, sure, but CBC's Alex Shprintsen (writing for The Globe & Mail) took a look at the Leafs' draft history over the past 20 years as an explanation of their futility over the same period. Go read it. Now.
Eklund's ramblings:
Seems Eklund at hockeybuzz.com is hot with rumours (again). This time, there are rumblings of a shake-up in Tampa Bay that may see Vinny Lecavalier dealt. The Leafs and Canadiens are apparently the two most interested teams. The short version is here:
"So does that mean that Vinny LeCavalier, perhaps the best player in the world, could be gone?
Sources say yes, and point to the the fact that a ransom could be gotten that could include a young goalie and several top players for Vinny. All of who could be slotted into the Tampa line-up and make the team more affordable...and maybe even more of a contender."
I'd love to blow some smoke up your ass about how the Leafs can land Vinny, but the simply reality is that Montreal can offer much more than can the Leafs. The talk of a young goaltender than can immediately play for the Lightning is the nail in the coffin; the Leafs simply don't have that. Montreal has both Carey Price and, more realistically, Jaro Halak as trade bait. The Leafs have the less talented Justin Pogge but he is not NHL-ready as of yet.
Of course, this doesn't even speak to the 'top players' mentioned by Eklund. Montreal can offer better young players than can Toronto. Moreover, Toronto's top players have contracts that make trading them quite difficult. And, considering that Tampa Bay is trading Vinny mostly due to financial reasons, I really can't see the Lightning taking on significant contracts in return.
In short, trading for Vincent Lecavalier would be a franchise-altering move, and would be the first time in the history of the Leafs that they have employed the best player in the league (while he was on the top of his game)...but don't hold your breath waiting for this move to happen.
Sidney Crosby was absolutely invisible during the game. If I didn't know better, I'd have assumed he was a run-of-the-mill 2nd or 3rd line player based on his performance on Saturday. Once-in-a-generation players aren't supposed to disappear for entire games like that, and it furthers my theory that Crosby is not. Crosby is absolutely a franchise player - the type of player you build a team around - but I am still not convinced he is in the Bobby Orr / Wayne Gretzky / Mario Lemieux mold.Let me get one more thing off my back: Gary Roberts. This is a player that is still regarded as a nice rental player for any team planning to do damage in the playoffs. A player that will make any team he is on better. I am here to tell you that Gary Roberts is finished, and has been since his last season in Toronto. Before you attack me, let me say this: Roberts has produced for a long time in the NHL, and overcome things that deserve a standing ovation when he hangs the skates up. Moreover, he is a great character guy and leader. But, as a player, he is done. Roberts looked terrible on Saturday night, taking 3 penalties and going -1. He is still capable when within 10 feet of the opposition's net, but is a liability everywhere else. Watching Roberts in Toronto was agony; he simply can no longer do the things that an effective player can, but you want to cheer for him because he's a great guy who has overcome a lot. Saturday night was a little easier as he was on the opposing team, so his mistakes only helped the home team.
The best Maple Leafs article you will read all season:
Bold statement, sure, but CBC's Alex Shprintsen (writing for The Globe & Mail) took a look at the Leafs' draft history over the past 20 years as an explanation of their futility over the same period. Go read it. Now.
Eklund's ramblings:
Seems Eklund at hockeybuzz.com is hot with rumours (again). This time, there are rumblings of a shake-up in Tampa Bay that may see Vinny Lecavalier dealt. The Leafs and Canadiens are apparently the two most interested teams. The short version is here:
"So does that mean that Vinny LeCavalier, perhaps the best player in the world, could be gone?
Sources say yes, and point to the the fact that a ransom could be gotten that could include a young goalie and several top players for Vinny. All of who could be slotted into the Tampa line-up and make the team more affordable...and maybe even more of a contender."
I'd love to blow some smoke up your ass about how the Leafs can land Vinny, but the simply reality is that Montreal can offer much more than can the Leafs. The talk of a young goaltender than can immediately play for the Lightning is the nail in the coffin; the Leafs simply don't have that. Montreal has both Carey Price and, more realistically, Jaro Halak as trade bait. The Leafs have the less talented Justin Pogge but he is not NHL-ready as of yet.
Of course, this doesn't even speak to the 'top players' mentioned by Eklund. Montreal can offer better young players than can Toronto. Moreover, Toronto's top players have contracts that make trading them quite difficult. And, considering that Tampa Bay is trading Vinny mostly due to financial reasons, I really can't see the Lightning taking on significant contracts in return.
In short, trading for Vincent Lecavalier would be a franchise-altering move, and would be the first time in the history of the Leafs that they have employed the best player in the league (while he was on the top of his game)...but don't hold your breath waiting for this move to happen.
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